It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.'
- Voltaire, philosopher (384-322 BC)
'Princeton University philosopher Harry Frankfurt, in his recent book On Bullshit, points out that bullshit is a bigger enemy of truth than lies. The truth-teller, he argues, is guided by the "authority of truth", while the liar refuses to meet the demands of that authority. But the bullshitter, he argues, simply "ignores these demands altogether", making bullshitting a worse crime than actually lying...'Spin doctors, or propagandists, to use their old name, are a strange breed with disagreeable mannerisms that set them apart from the rest of the population. They have the extraordinary ability to be insincere, obscure the truth with irrelevant claptrap, hang up the phone mid-sentence and still be able to sleep straight in their beds at night How the Government controls the news
The Blog, The Press, The Media: "Good" leaks and "bad" leaks
Ach the deals some journalists strike to gain important information. It's a practice coming under increased scrutiny — in an industry suffering a credibility crisis — as such sources often use their anonymity for political ends rather than whistle-blowing
A prominent newspaper reporter is in custody for refusing to disclose secret conversations with Bush administration officials, while the curmudgeonly columnist at the center of the investigation remains free, his situation shrouded in mystery.
Jay Rosen Time for Robert Novak to Feel Some Chill and the commentariat gets pretty heated. In fact, it is boiling hot!
• Officials' and media's tangled ties [Google: A chilling day for the First Amendment ; The tradition established by King O'Malley of American representation in the Australian Labor Party continues today Dear Campaigns & Election ; Google A reporter goes to jail in a case without heroes ; Whistleblower nurses are not being paid but Walt Secord, the Premier's spin doctor, is getting $180,000 a year Walt Secord The most memorable person the spin doctor School massacre scare Backfires on Australian state government ]
• · As a follow-up to my June 5 posting, Advocacy Group Publishes Legal Guide for Blogger, today EFF announced the addition of a labor law section to its guide Bloggers' FAQ: Labor Law ; Advocacy Group Publishes Legal Guide for Bloggers ; News of the suspected terror attacks across central London has quickly spread across the net as people try to get information about the chaos Blogs respond to London blasts ; History is full of accidental journalism using portable devices, from the famous Abraham Zapruder film capturing President John F. Kennedy's assassination to the videotape of Rodney King being beaten by Los Angeles police and the incriminating snapshots taken at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq Citizen journalism will reshape role of traditional news media ; As journalists scrambled to cover the London bomb blasts, ordinary citizens went online to share pictures snapped by cameraphones and reports of what they saw WSJ's round-up of citizen-journalists' accounts and images
• · · Just amazing in less than a decade Google enters top 100 list ; The Financial Times Global 500 List ; Entrepreneurial Resources ; Google watching every lobbyist entering Parliament House Canberra; CNet reports Google has invested in a broadband-over-powerline company Google as Data Pipe Infrastructure Company ; Given the omnipresence of Amazon.com it's hard to believe Jeff Bezos put up his shingle a mere decade ago. While 4 July 2000 marks the birth of Webdiary of Margo Kingston, 16 July marks the ten-year anniversary of Jeff’s amazing creation Within a decade, Amazon.com became a best seller of its own CODA: The next huge trend: HOW TO PodcastChapterTool
• · · · Marketers See Opportunity as a Web Tool Gains Users Expanding the Reach of Online Advertising Through RSS ; Driver's licences, credit cards and electronic passports may share a standard for recording physical descriptions of the holder, in a dramatic extension of government ID plans. Called biometric identifiers, unique physical features of individuals such as fingerprints, facial features and characteristics of the human eye are recorded and installed in an electronic chip embedded in documents and cards Spy in the eye driver's licence ; All Hail the Dragonmaster
• · · · · A political odd couple, backed by an unusual coalition of advocacy groups and news organizations, is looking to crack down on government officials who ignore public requests for information Openness Law May Get Muscle ; NEWS Ltd chief executive John Hartigan, left, with Sydney mX editor Brett De Vine and advertising sales director Tamara Wupper at yesterday's launch New mX daily woos untapped readers
• · · · · · Bussiness Week Blogging For Dollars ; Darren Rowse What is a Blog? ; Government Technology reports that Suffolk County, New York is blazing an e-government trail with the launch of a subscriber based Virtual County Clerk's Office NY County Clerk's Office Launches First Subscriber Service in Nation